Heat Challenge – Tesla Model 3, Nissan LEAF, & ICE – Video

The guys over at Now You Know (father and son duo, Zac and Jesse) have been making a multitude of videos, many of which feature their new Tesla Model 3. They got the car just before the holidays and ran the “12 Days of Model 3” series. Their videos tend to be fun, up-close and personal, and a bit less mainstream than much of what’s out there.

Nissan LEAF in the snow

In this video, the team races to the vehicles because it’s relatively cold outside (11F/-12C) and they’re wearing t-shirts. None of the cars have been pre-heated. They don’t actually start the vehicles until they’re inside, and then they give us a first-hand account of how the heating system, heated seats, etc. are working. Added to this, they have a timer running and they continuously take temperature readings from various areas inside of each car.

In general, they come to an obvious conclusion that any car really needs a good ten minutes of warming up before you will begin to experience comfortable temps. They find that the Honda Civic takes longer than the Tesla Model 3 to warm up, however, it doesn’t have heated seats, so that puts it at an immediate disadvantage. Nonetheless, temps coming from the HVAC system are still colder for a longer period of time than they were in the Model 3.

The first-generation Nissan LEAF does a really nice job heating up. In fact, it appears that it gets hotter quicker than the Model 3. However, there’s a significant amount of battery loss in a very short period of time. Considering the fact that the car already has a more limited range than the Model 3, you may not be able to heat it for long periods of time in cold weather if range is a concern for you.

The Volt is a great solution in colder climes. The new coolant jacket, in the exhaust manifold of V2, should heat faster and very little gas warms the coolant & cabin (.1 gallon, in my experience). The 6KW heater, however, cuts both ways.

Zac and Jesse, at one point, showed the 79F setting on Model 3’s dash, while talking at the camera, in jackets. In Model S, settings below 78 can seem like nothing. Sort of like the volume control scroll wheel needing a lot of spin to achieve not a lot of volume, it could use a fix.

The knurled scroll wheels, on Model 3’s SW? I loved those. Great feedback.